IRA investments can be a daunting task, especially when the stock market starts looking rocky.
In times of stock market insecurity, many individuals favor gold, silver, and palladium for their long-term investments.
While traditional IRAs do not permit direct purchases of physical precious metals, there are specialized precious metal IRA plans, silver IRAs and Gold IRAs available that let you invest in retirement with gold and gold coins, silver, palladium, and other types of valuable metals.
In my journey to complete financial competence, I’ve developed extensive experience researching and understanding the value of a precious metal investment.
With that background, I’ve compiled the four best companies for opening a precious metal IRA account in 2023.
Best Precious Metal IRA Companies
After countless hours of research and actual real-deal investments, I can see how important it is to choose precious metals IRA companies that offer expertise, security, and IRS approval.
The companies that I’m going to discuss today offer all of those qualities and more:
Noble Gold Investments
Augusta Precious Metals
Goldco
Birch Gold Group
I’ll be sure to include my take on each company’s pros and cons, as well as the special qualities they bring to the table that made their place on this list over other precious metals IRA companies.
If you want more information on precious metals investing, scroll past this list for blog-style and FAQ sections.
Without further ado, here are the best precious metals IRA companies to look into for 2023.
Why We Picked It
Noble Gold Investments is a trustworthy and expert precious metals company that’s great for advanced investors and beginners alike.
Their account managers consult expertise all over the financial industry to provide a wide range of well-informed and reliable services for their clients.
They also offer an efficient buyback program that allows you to maintain financial flexibility if your mind or circumstances change.
401(k) and IRA transfer is a breeze that requires no effort on your part — it’s entirely facilitated by their team.
Finally, they have an in-house depository to store your precious metals securely and safely. They’ll ensure you witness the delivery of your precious metals with photographic proof.
The metals they offer are physical gold coins or the option gold bullion, silver bullion with coins of tons of designs, palladium bars and coins, and platinum bars and coins.
Pros
- IRA-approved
- Wide variety of precious metals
- Easy IRA rollover
- Transparent about IRA fees
- Straightforward and managed set-up
Cons
- No international metal storage
- IRA rollover doesn't apply to pensions
Why We Picked It
Augusta Precious Metals is widely trusted and ranks highly among other precious metals IRAs.
It’s been a leader in gold, silver, and other precious metals IRAs since it was founded in 2012.
However, they’re most popular for their gold IRA offerings.
It offers all the necessary factors of reliability, lifetime support, security, direct purchasing, and secure storage for your gold coins and other metals.
Their three main commitments to their clients are transparency, simplicity, and great service backed by a Harvard-trained economic analyst.
This makes them an excellent choice and reputable gold IRA company no matter where you stand on your investment journey.
Pros
- Expert gold IRA education
- Purchase precious metals to add to your IRA over time
- Distribution management during liquidation
- Competitive pricing
- Easy setup for your precious metals IRA account
Cons
- Minimum investment is higher than other gold IRA companies at $50,000
Why We Picked It
Goldco offers savings protection with gold and silver IRAs.
They’re one of the best gold IRA companies currently on the market with A+ ratings from the Better Business Bureau and the Business Consumer Alliance.
With Goldco, you have the option to buy physical gold and silver directly or invest your assets into a precious metals IRA.
Their specialists are experts in the industry and can help you manage your assets at any step of your journey.
Their set-up process is especially straightforward, more so than other gold IRA companies.
You can set up your account entirely online while maintaining total security and safety.
Pros
- Expert and free retirement resources
- 10% back on any silver coins purchased
- Streamlined IRA account set-ups
Cons
- Only offers gold and silver IRAs
Birch Gold Group offers strong and secure investments at more affordable minimums than other precious metals IRA companies.
You can begin investing with them at only $10,000.
They also have a stellar and reliable buy-back program that can save you a lot of hassle.
They’ll repurchase your precious metals at their current value if needed, which is excellent if your circumstances change and you need money quickly.
They offer gold IRA rollover programs, as well as the same for their other precious metals.
Pros
- Insured precious metals shipments
- Generally comprehensive insurance
- No fees for first year
- Great buy-back program
Cons
- Only U.S.-based investors can use their services
What is a Precious Metals IRA?
“Precious metals IRA” is an umbrella term that includes the gold IRA, silver IRA, and all other types of tangible metal IRA investments.
Precious metals IRAs are a type of self-directed IRA.
Self-directed IRAs are a type of investment option that ventures beyond traditional types of assets into things like precious metals, cryptocurrency, real estate, and more.
These investments come with virtually all of the same features as a regular IRA.
Precious metals IRAs are especially popular for retirement plans because metals like gold, silver, and palladium tend to increase in value as time passes.
Physical gold and other metals have a solid and unfluctuating quality, especially compared to the stock market, that’s very appealing for people looking for stable investments.
These IRAs tend to provide insurance against the volatility of other investments.
This doesn’t mean they don’t come without some volatility of their own, but that’s the nature of most investments.
No trustworthy financial expert or advisor would recommend investing completely in precious metals IRAs, but they’re an excellent way to diversify your portfolio and hold value.
How to Open a Precious Metals IRA
Now that you have some background on precious metals IRAs, here’s how you can get started with actually opening one.
Choose an IRA Custodian
Your IRA is held by a “custodian,” which can include individual financial advisors, banks, trust companies, and any other entities as long as they’re approved by the IRS.
Precious metals IRA custodians are “self-directed,” since precious metals are an alternative asset.
They’re experts in precious metals investing and will be there to answer any questions you have throughout the entire process of owning a precious metals IRA.
Buy Your Precious Metals
It’s highly possible your IRA custodian already has connections to precious metals resources.
For example, you can purchase gold, silver, platinum, and more directly from the IRA companies I’ve included in this list.
Otherwise, do your research before purchasing precious metals from just anyone.
Make sure your dealer belongs to groups like the ANA (American Numismatic Association), ICTA (Industry Council for Tangible Assets), and other industry-verified organizations.
Choose a Depository
Precious metals must be stored in an approved depository.
This means you can’t store your precious metals IRA yourself.
IRA approval ensures legitimacy and maximum security for your tangible assets.
You can either go with a recommendation from your custodian or do research and choose one yourself.
Complete the Process
Completing the process is the final step of opening a precious metals IRA.
It’ll be mostly handled by your custodian, who will execute the payments.
Then, your dealer will ship your metals to the depository.
Often, you can ask for some form of proof that your metals are entering the depository so that the transaction feels more complete.
Popular Types of Precious Metal IRAs
Gold IRAs
Gold IRAs allow investors to hold gold as a retirement investment.
Individuals with gold IRAs can hold gold bars, gold coins, or other forms such as the gold bullion.
Investments also include ETFs (exchange-traded funds), stocks in gold mining companies, mutual funds for precious metals, and commodity futures.
These IRAs are held separately from traditional retirement accounts, and they’re opened through custodians, brokers, and dealers.
The gold you invest in must be 99.5% pure to qualify as a gold IRA.
Silver IRAs
A silver IRA is essentially the same thing as a gold IRA except with silver coins, bars, etc. instead of gold.
Silver is an essential element in the creation process of many products, so it’s unlikely to lose its value.
It’s actually outperformed gold during times of high demand for precious metals.
Precious Metal IRA Benefits
Diversity
Diversity in an investment portfolio means that you’re lowering your risk of bankruptcy by spreading your money out.
A diversified portfolio will have money spread across multiple asset classes, such as stocks, bonds, cash, land, precious metals, and cryptocurrency.
Diversification is a number one recommendation among most financial advisors when it comes to maintaining growth potential and weathering the market.
Safety
Gold, silver, and other precious metals have always held a tangible quality that feels safe to investors.
The same can’t be said about other paper assets, stocks, and bonds.
Physical metals can never be worth zero or go out of business.
They’re also not as subject to inflation and deflation as paper assets, normally moving in the opposite direction.
This makes them a solid currency hedge for investors looking for extra insurance.
Tax Benefits
With a Self-Directed Precious Metals IRA, you will enjoy the same incredible tax advantages as with traditional IRAs.
Moreover, depending on your income bracket, contributions to this type of account may be utilized as a way to reduce your taxable income.
AKA, you can potentially claim them as tax-deductible.
By investing in gold within an IRA, you will not be taxed until the cash is distributed to you. Then, taxes are imposed at your current marginal rate.
Long Term Holdings
Because precious metals aren’t as subject to inflation, they have the potential to be held for a long time. Generations, even.
Long-term investments almost always offer more gains than short-term ones.
And precious metals are notorious for increasing value over super-prolonged periods.
However, precious metals IRAs also usually offer flexibility to sell or participate in a buy-back program if needed.
Growth Potential
Standard IRA accounts are generally associated with a certain range of stocks, bonds, and mutual funds that can be directly impacted by the economy.
When economic downturns occur, these accounts may suffer greatly as a result.
During such conditions, however, precious metals like gold and silver often act as safe havens for investment.
This will increase their profit potential exponentially when compared to other assets during turbulent times.
Gold and other precious metals’ returns have been primarily positive and surpassed inflation over various time periods.
Precious Metal IRA Risks
Physical Precious Metals Volatility
The quality of precious metal investment largely depends on unpredictable market forces like supply and demand, international markets, inflation, and general economic expectations.
Like other investments, it’s nearly impossible to predict the state of these factors with certainty.
Prices of precious metals can rise and fall over time, and for the most part, there’s not much we as investors can do.
This is why a diversified portfolio is essential.
Conclusion
Precious metals can be a solid investment when planning for retirement and a more secure future.
I hope these companies I recommended give you a promising next step in your IRA journey.
Good luck, and happy investing!
Precious Metals IRAs FAQ
A precious metal IRA is an efficient way to safeguard your wealth from inflation, but it does present the risk of allocating too much capital to a single asset class.
Make sure not to put all of your investments into precious metals.
A self-directed IRA can hold precious metals like gold bullion, silver, and palladium.
My top pick for a gold IRA company is Noble Gold Investments.
Gold and silver are the two most-lauded precious metal investments, due to their increased investor attention during rough economic times.
A gold IRA company facilitates your investments in precious metals and makes the process easier. They often partner with custodians.
